Over 50,000 tourists are expected to visit Peru's Southern city of Puno and attend the Virgen de la Candelaria Festivity, its Regional Directorate of Foreign Trade and Tourism (Dircetur) projected.
Deemed as one of the Inca nation's most important cultural manifestations, the festivity will run from January 29 thru February 12.
According to Dircetur Head Francisco Paca, the 2017 tourist arrival projection was calculated based on reports from previous years, when 70% of guests were Peruvian citizens and the remaining 30% were foreigners.
During the celebrations, Dircetur will deploy 100 tourism brigade members, who will provide information to visitors, as well as distribute leaflets with data on festivity schedules, destinations and museums.
On the occasion, city authorities also inspect local hotels and restaurants to guarantee the quality of services.
Among the main scheduled activities, the regional contest of typical dances, scheduled for Jan 29, and the Trajes de Luces Traditional eye-catching Costume dance, Feb 5-6, stand out.
Cultural Heritage
Puno's Festivity of Virgen de la Candelaria was included into UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on November 27, 2014.
The religious festival constitutes one of the country's biggest and lengthiest cultural manifestations. A distinctive expression of living culture, it welcomes tens of thousands of local and foreign visitors every year.
(END) JHM/MVB